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Before I could respond, the metal door burst open with a creak. Two men stepped in, dressed similarly in their dark jeans and sweaters and guns slung over their shoulders. One of them stepped forward and unlocked Rafael’s door. My heart jumped into my throat as I scrambled forward, a protest on the tip of my tongue.
The other one pressed the gun to my forehead.
“You think you’re better than us, don’t you?” The other man dragged Rafael forward and threw him onto the floor with a thud. Then, he yanked him up by the hair and pressed his face to Rafael’s. Rafael remained still, his expression blank as the man yelled and shook, casting glances at his friend while he did. Abruptly, he stopped and started to beat Rafael up.
I didn’t realize that the choking noise came from me until the guard reached between the bars and slapped me clean across the face. I tasted blood on the tip of my tongue, the metallic smell of it filling me. With trembling fingers, I held onto the bars and swallowed thickly.
Rafael looked over at me and held my gaze.
When it was over, he was pushed onto the floor. His entire body was bloodied, bruised, and glistening with sweat. The two guards loomed over him and spat. One of them used the heel of his boot to push Rafael onto his side and snickered.
Then the door creaked shut behind them, and Rafael remained bathed in the silver glow of the moon. I cast a quick glance around the room, but none of the others had stirred or reacted to anything.
“Rafael.” I pulled on the bars, my heart sputtering inside of my chest. “Come on, man. Wake up. You can’t just sit there. You’ll get sick.”
Rafael turned his head and looked directly at me.
“Get up,” I hissed, struggling to hear past the pounding in my ears. “You have to get up. Maria wouldn’t want you to do this.”
Silence stretched between us.
“Think of your parents,” I urged, tears stinging the back of my eyes. “Don’t do this, please.”
Rafael’s mouth parted, but he only released a harsh intake of breath.
“No,” I said in a louder voice. “You’re not going to die. Not here. Not like this. Not you.”
“Shane.”
I thrash and moan. “No, he can’t die like this.”
“Shane.” A pair of arms come up around me, followed by a distinct floral smell. “Wake up. You’re having a nightmare.”
My eyes fly open, and I find myself face to face with Evie. She sits on the mattress in a pair of gray fleece pajamas with her hair piled on top of her head and her eyebrows furrowed together. Wordlessly, she leans over the nightstand and holds out a glass of water. I take it from her and down it all in one gulp before releasing a deep and shuddering breath.
“Do you want another one?” Evie’s eyes stay on my face, full of warmth. “I can go get you another one.”
I give a slight shake of my head. “No, I’m okay.”
Evie removes both of her arms from around my shoulders and lets them fall to her sides. “Okay, I’m glad. Do you want to talk about it?”
I run a hand over my face and peer at her. “I was thinking about this boy who was with me when I… when we were taken.”
Evie swallows. “I’m sorry.”
I blow out a breath. “He should’ve been the one to survive, not me. He would’ve done much better with the second chance he’d been given.”
Evie searches my face. “What makes you think that?”
“Rafael was going to be a farmer,” I whisper before looking away from her and at a fixed spot on the wall behind her. “He was going to marry the girl next door and raise a bunch of good kids who would’ve made the world a better place.”
Evie shifts closer to me and brushes her hand against mine. “I know it’s hard to make sense of something like that, Shane. But you can’t blame yourself for surviving while he didn’t.”
My gaze swings back to hers. “Why not?”
“Because it’s not your fault,” Evie replies. “None of it was your fault. Not that you were taken. Not what happened while you were there, anddefinitelynot the fact that you made it out when he didn’t.”
I take her hand in mine and lace our fingers together.
